IN the SUPREME COURT of BANGLADESH HIGH COURT DIVISION (SPECIAL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION) Writ Petition No. 696 of 2010 in the Matt
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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF BANGLADESH HIGH COURT DIVISION (SPECIAL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION) Writ Petition No. 696 of 2010 In the matter of: An application under Article 102(2)(a)(ii) of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh And In the matter of: Siddique Ahmed. ... Petitioner -Versus- Bangladesh, represented by the Secretary Ministry of law, justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Bangladesh Secretariat, P.S.-Ramna and District-Dhaka and others. ....Respondents Mr. Hasan M.S. Azim with Mr. Mirza Ali Mahmood, Advocate. ...For the petitioner Mr. Mahbubey Alam, Attorney General Mr.Akram Hossain Chowdhury Mr.Karunamoy Chakma Mr.Bhisma Dev Chakravarty Ms.Promila Biswas Ms.Shakila Rowshan Jahan Deputy Attorneys General Mr.Ekramul Haque Md.Diliruzzaman Ms. Kasifa Hossain Assistant Attorneys General And Mr.M.K.Rahman, Additional Attorney General with Mr.Mostafa Zaman Islam Deputy Attorney General Mr.S.M.Nazmul Huq Assistant Attorney General ... For respondent no.1. Mr. Murad Reza, Additional Attorney General with Mr. Md. Nazrul Islam Talukder Mr. Md. Motaher Hossain Sazu, Mr. M. Khurshid Alam sarker, Mr. Mahammad Selim =2= .... Deputy Attorneys General Mr. Delowar Hossain Samaddar, A.A.G Mr. A.B.M. Altaf Hossain, A.A.G Mr. Amit Talukder, A.A.G Mr. Md. Shahidul Islam Khan, A.A.G Ms. Purabi Saha, A.A.G Ms. Fazilatunessa Bappy, A.A.G ... For the respondents No.2 Mr. M. Amir-Ul Islam, Senior Advocate Mr. A.F.M. Mesbahuddin, Senior Advocate Mr. Abdul Matin Khasru, Senior Advocate Mr. Yusuf Hossain Humayun, Advocate ......As Amicus Curiae Heard on 08.07.10, 26.07.10, 27.07.10, 10.08.10, 16.08.10, 25.8.10 and Judgment on 26.08.2010. Present: Mr. Justice A.H.M. Shamsuddin Choudhury And Mr. Justice Sheikh Md. Zakir Hossain A.H. M. Shamsuddin Chowdhury J: By this Petition, which engendered the under mentioned Rule, the petitioner sought to have the conviction and sentence, a special martial law court passed on him on 20th March 2006, set aside. Although the relief the petitioner asked for, is simple, the grounds on which he erected his claim to the aspired relief, invoke an issue of immense Constitutional importance, questioning the very validity of all the martial law instruments, inclusive of the proclamation of martial law itself, General Hussain Mohammed Ershad, purportedly, issued on assumption of power on 24th March 1982 and all other instruments that emanated from the authoritarian ruler during his de-facto rule. =3= The petitioner has, to make out a case for the effacement of the conviction handed upon him, challenged the constitutionality of an Act of Parliament, named the Constitution (Seventh Amendment)Act 1986, by which the Constitution was purportedly amended to accommodate into it all the aforementioned instruments. It is the petitioner’s claim that the pretentious court was in fact a ‘coram non judice’ as it was an offspring of a martial law instrument, which can not be visualised through any spectacle of legality. By the rule, the petition succeeded to animate, the Respondents were asked to show cause as to why Section 3 of the Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act 1986, purportedly seeking to ratify and confirm the Proclamation of Martial Law on March 24, 1982 and all other Proclamations, Proclamation Orders, Chief Martial Law Administrator’s Orders, Martial Law Regulations, Martial Law Orders, Martial Law Instructions etc., henceforth conjointly cited as ‘instruments’, made during the period between March 24, 1982 and the date of the commencement of the Constitution (Seven Amendment) Act, 1986 (Act 1 of 1986), should not be declared to be without lawful authority and is of no legal effect and, why a direction for re-trial of Kotowali P.S. Case No. 25 dated 24.12.1984, (corresponding G.R. No. 1676 of 1984), under Section 302/34 of the Penal Code, should not be issued, and why such other order or orders should not be passed as this court may deem appropriate. Pending hearing of the Rule, the petitioner was enlarged on bail in Martial Law Case No. 12 of 1986, which arose out of Kotowali P.S. Case No. 25 dated 24.12.1984 (corresponding G.R. =4= No.1676 of 1984), for a period of 6(six) months from the date of release. The Rule was issued by a Division Bench comprising Momtazuddin Ahmed and Naima Haider JJ. To lend support to what he craved, the petitioner figured detailed averments, which are summarised below ; Notwithstanding that, as a law abiding citizen, the petitioner has always maintained a straight and impeccable track record , he was, nevertheless, indicted of an offence punishable under Section 302, read with Section 34 of the Penal Code. The case stemmed from a First Information Report that was lodged with the Kotwali Police Station of Chittagong on 24th December 1984 and was registered as Kotwali PS Case Number 25, dated 24/12/1984. The allegations, figured in the Report, was to the effect that one Abu Taher, son of Md. Kala Miah, resident at a dwelling named Islam Colony at Khatunganj area of Chittagong, was pursuing his vocation as a vender for his livelihood. His aforenamed son also resided with him at the same address. On 11th November 1984, Kala Miah along with his son was busy in selling spices in the market. During the period of intermission, Kala sent his son off to their residence to fetch lunch items. His son was carrying an amount of Tk.1500. An hour afterward, one of the accused persons named Nur, cited in the FIR, approached Kala at the latter’s shop and intimated that he saw his son in an alarming state of health. Kala rushed to his residence while Nur left for a doctor. On arrival Kala found his son , Abu Taher, not alive, in a sitting posture with his lungi around his neck, tied with a bamboo. Kala’s =5= landlord intimated the Kotwali police of the incident over telephone, and the police responded by arriving at the venue of occurrence. It was alleged in the FIR that Siddique Ahmed, the petitioner before us, along with Nur were to blame for the for homicide of Abu Taher. It was indeed, Kala who lodged the Information. The case was initially registered as Kotwali PS UD Case number 17 of 1984. The autopsy report compiled by the doctors at the General hospital in Chittagong, revealed that the death was occasioned by hemorrhage in the brain surface, which resulted from attack by moderately heavy blunt weapon and the death was homicidal in nature. A Sub-Inspector at Kotwali PS subsequently lodged a fresh FIR on 24th December 1984, citing Section 302 of the Penal Code and the case at that stage received it’s latest number. Two different Sub-Inspectors of the Kotwali Police Station investigated into the incident on turn and then submitted a final report. A Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong Metropolitan Police, however, at that stage, set the Detective Branch into motion for further investigation and, a Sub-Inspector of the said branch transmitted a Police Report in affirmative term, indicting 3 persons inclusive of the petitioner, engaging Section 302 of the Penal Code. The petitioner was arrested on 11th April 1985 and was produced before a Magistrate on the same day. It appears from the Magistrate’s order sheet that the petitioner successfully applied for bail in the Court of the Session’s Judge, =6= Chittagong, and the petitioner won his liberty on 24th December 1985. On maturity for trial, the case was transferred to the Session’s judge, Chittagong, it was re numbered as ST Case no 10 of 1986, and the learned judge transferred it to an Additional Session’s Judge for disposal. The Additional Session’s Judge concerned, however, being asked to do so by the authorities, transmitted the case records to the Chairman, Special Martial Law Court no 3, Zone C, Chittagong. The Special Martial Law Court, which owed it’s existence to a martial law regulation, then assumed jurisdiction over the matter and numbered it as Martial Law Case no 12 of 1986. Records divulge that neither the petitioner nor the other accused persons made themselves available before the said martial law court when trial commenced therein. The said court proceeded with the trial in absence of the accused persons engaging Section 339 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, framed charges on 15th March 1986 against all the accused under Sections 302/34 of the Penal Code. In view of the absence of the accused persons, a state appointed counsel was commissioned to defend the latter. Some 8 out of 10 prosecution witnesses, the remaining 2 being tendered only, were examined by the prosecution and cross examined by the state engaged lawyer. At the conclusion of the trial, the martial law court concerned found all the accused persons guilty and sentenced them to suffer imprisonment for life and to pay fine of Tk.1000.00, or to suffer another period of rigorous imprisonment in default. =7= A Lieutenant Colonel, on a so called review, affirmed the conviction and then Lieutenant General Hussain Muhammed Ershad, as the Chief Martial Law Administrator, confirmed the judgment and order on 20th March 1986. The petitioner remained at large till 2nd August 2006, on which date he was rounded up and then produced before a Metropolitan Magistrate in Dhaka, whereupon the Magistrate sent the earlier to the prison and transmitted the records to the Court of Session’s Judge, Dhaka. The said Court in turn, issued a warrant of conviction against the petitioner. The petitioner has, thence, been languishing in jail for a period in excess of 3 years.